Just like a shiny new haircut, the New Year gets us into the spirit of giving life a bit of a refresh.

Not only is it about starting the next 12 months as we mean go to go on; resolutions are a good excuse to reflect on where we are, who we’ve become and where we want to go (even if we don’t always stick to them). 

But what it shouldn’t be about is conjuring up a New Year New You. The idea of morphing people into supposedly more wholesome and superior characters at this time of year is unproductive, unrealistic and – let’s be honest – not very fun either. 

So we asked some of our favourite British women to divulge their goals for the year ahead. We hope these witty and inspiring pledges help spark your own alternative resolutions. 

Illustrations by: Sejal Kapadia Pocha

Katie Piper, philanthropist and TV presenter

Katie Piper is the definition of strength and resilience. The presenter and philanthropist has spent the last decade rebuilding her life and face after a horrific acid attack. Her new book Confidence: The Journal is out now.

Bella Younger, comedian

The comedian’s satirical Instagram account, Deliciously Stella, has become a hugely popular antidote to society’s obsession with clean-eating and wellbeing. In 2017, she published her first book on “the #cleaneating life hacks she swears by to achieve a #strongnotskinny look and a #blessed outlook on life”. 

Laura Bates, founder of Everyday Sexism Project

Laura Bates’ campaign to log and report British women's experiences of gender inequality has sparked a worldwide movement of people calling out #everydaysexism, one of the most poignant and powerful hashtags of our times. 

Gemma Correll, illustrator

The acclaimed British-born illustrator has doodled for The New York Times, The Observer and her own line of pug-themed books. She is best known for her witty series on everyday anxieties, especially her brilliantly apt “nope” girl.

Mhairi Black, MP

When she was elected at 21 years old, the SNP representative for Paisley and Renfrewshire South became the youngest MP for 350 years. She has continuously displayed an air of guts and glory in her first year in Parliament. 

June Sarpong, presenter

Over her 20-year career, Sarpong has become one of the most recognisable faces of British television, presenting for T4, Newsnight in 2014 and joining the panel for Loose Women. 

“Every New Year most of us diligently write out our New Year’s Resolutions, we assess the new habits we’d like to form and the old ones we’d like to lose,” says Sarpong. “We complete this task with the full knowledge that we unlikely to maintain hardly anything on the list, nonetheless each year we partake in this ritual because it makes us feel better because we know deep down we at some point need to change.  I would argue that we also need to embark on a ‘Year’s Dissolution.’”

Susan Riley, Acting editor at Stylist

Alongside Stylist editor-in-chief Lisa Smosarski, acting editor Susan Riley has been the brains behind the brand’s feminist stance since it launched in October 2009. She’s also overseen the magazine’s travel articles and judged the Mr and Mrs Smith Hotel Awards. 

Illustrations by: Sejal Kapadia Pocha

This article was originally published on 3 January 2017.